Somewhat Super
by Sky.Fay
Summary: Zephyr has traded her boring, normal life for that of a superhero overnight. There are some milestones that she must cross though; like dealing with an attractive, mysterious guy who claims they've known each other since birth, and not being able to brush aside her feelings for Aqaulad.
1. A New Life?

"Stop squirming, scoundrel!" I realize as I'm saying this that the 'scoundrel' part sounds a bit ridiculous.

"My name is Control Freak! **Control Freak**! And I will not be silenced or apprehended by some…some _pizza delivery girl_." He begins hitting the sides of the air bubble I have him sealed in. "I deserve the Teen Titans, not their food provider!" His rant doesn't end until we finally make it to the Tower's first set of security checks.

"Huh, who's there?" A deep, male voice calls out.

"Pizza," I answer coolly, I'm mostly annoyed with this villain I'm hauling to the Titans. "And I have some guy called Control Freak with me, he was trying to break in and I stopped him."

"Oh, well," he seems interested and worried now, "We'll be right there, don't panic, it'll only be a se…" His voice trails off and I realize that the whole team is soon going to be coming to my rescue. I didn't need them, but I suppose it'll be fun to meet all of them, and see their reactions.

"YES, the Teen Titans are coming for me. See, I said you couldn't handle me."

"The only reason I'm taking you to them is because I don't have connections with law enforcement, and being a vigilante is generally frowned upon in this city." I huff and swipe a piece of flyaway, wavy hair that fell out of my pony tail while I had been fighting the ridiculous, little villain.

"We're here to rescue…you?" I look up from the pizza box to observe their reactions. Each of them appeared genuinely surprised. It was Robin, boy wonder, who spoke. "Um…what's going on?"

"I'm here to deliver your pizza." I answer smartly. "Well, that and I found him trying to make his way to the tower. Since I don't have the same kind of partnership with the police that you do, I figured I would drop him off along with your food." I glance at each of them. The one I believe is Cyborg looks surprised, as does Robin, and Starfire; the girl, Raven, seems stoic about the whole matter; Beast Boy looks downright confused.

"So…you beat Control Freak on your own?" The downright confused one asks.

"Yes," I reply.

"How is he levitating?" Cyborg questions me and takes a step closer.

"I, um, I did that to him." I'm not sure how to go about this.

"Yeah, we got that, but how?" Robin sheaths his staff and crosses his arms expectantly.

"Listen, don't you guys just want to get your bad guy and your pizza?" I don't want this, I don't want to go on with this conversation.

"What do you have to keep secret?" The pale girl asks, her name is Raven, yes…Raven. Her tone is harsh and cold, like I had already double crossed them once.

"Nothing, nothing," I hurry to say, "I was just born with my powers, nothing special."

"Normal humans aren't just born with powers."

"I'm only, umm…" I chuckle nervously, why did any of this matter to them? "I'm really only half human, so if you could please just give me the money and take both of your deliveries that would be really great." I can tell they stop paying attention as soon as I'm done with the first part of my sentence. All of a sudden, they're examining me. They're not real obvious, like most people, but I can still feel their eyes on me. I stare down at the toes of my beat up white Converse, trying to ignore their stares.

"Can't you tell us more?" Nasally [in a way]. High-pitched, but male. Beast Boy.

"It really doesn't matter, can't you just take him or call the police I really need to go back to work." They all take a step closer to me, but now they're not examining me.

"Which planet are you from, friend? Can you not tell us your name?" She didn't have an accent per say, but one look at her at her and you knew she wasn't from around here.

"I'm from planet Earth, I was raised here and…you don't really want to know my name do you?"

"Where is you parent of alien from?"

"I don't know." I can tell she meant well, but even if I did know, I don't think I would've told them anything.

"C'mon, what's your name?" Cyborg prods while reaching toward the pizza.

"Zephyr," I answer. It was a nickname my father gave me long ago when I was young, when my powers had just started blooming.

"…Okay, I'll go call the police. In the meantime, welcome her and give her a communicator, Cyborg." Robin turns his back to walk away from everyone.

"Robin?!" Raven seems shocked by him, I am as well.

"I'm not saying that she's going to be part of our group, but thank her. She saved us some time that we could've been wasting on him." He motions to my air bubble, with the sad criminal now skulking in it.

Beast Boy plops onto the ground along with Cyborg, and both of them begin eating like pigs. I'm not sure if I should sit, I wonder if they would consider me rude if I did. Soon Starfire joins them in eating and as does Raven. I reach into my bag for a book to read to pass the time. It's one that I've been reading for as long as I can remember. The book is worn, and in some places the letters are so pale it becomes difficult to read, but I love it. I assume that it used to be my mothers.

"You can sit." I jump at the voice and sit. We were sitting in a circle now; I was between Raven and Starfire, Raven was next to Beast Boy, who was eating by Cyborg, who sat a space away from Starfire.

"Are you sure that you cannot tell us more about yourself?" I think about it for a moment. I could tell them what I was.

"I'm a half-human half-alien mutant. Something happened when I was little, some kind of science experiment gone wrong in my father's lab. And I ended up a little…stange."

"But you just look like a normal human to me; albeit one with superpowers." Cyborg says between bites of food. "Besides, all of us are a little strange. Look at Beast Boy and I; I'm half-robot and he's green!"

I only have a minute to think about that before Robin glides over and sits himself between Starfire and Cyborg. "The police should be here ten minutes." He grabbed a slice of pizza for himself.

"Wouldn't you like any of the glorious pizza, friend?" I looked up from my book again to see Starfire eyeing me.

"I can't," I say and glance down at the page number.

"Do you not enjoy the pizza?" I slowly close the book.

"No, no I do. I like pizza, but it's just not allowed." She didn't get it. "If I take a slice of your pizza, even if you're allowing me to, I'll get fired. It's just part of the job."

Beast Boy choked on the slice he was currently inhaling. "You're not allowed to eat the pizza you deliver?!"

"Well, not unless I'm the one who bought it." I pull off my visor and pull the black hair band out of my unruly hair with a little bit of difficulty. My wavy hair tumbles to my hips, my bang nearly obscure my left eye.

"Your hair is kind of weird." The green boy absentmindedly voiced his opinion out loud. Merely shrugging, I decide that I won't argue with him. My hair was hip length, wavy, unruly, and a bright shade of gray. I had tried to dye it when I had been younger, but nothing ever worked more than a few hours. Although, I suppose the thing that is the most strange about my hair is the light blue patch that grows at the base of my skull. I think the grey is natural, but I know the blue can't be.

Soon, between everyone eating and me not wanting to speak, an empty silence grows. I don't have much to think about, so merely ponder how much longer it'll take the police to show up. Before now I've always dreamed of being a superhero, I mean who doesn't? Even the bad guys are superhero's in their own right.

I'm surprised when they invite me up to their living room. Raven sits in the kitchen, reading, while Robin tries to teach Starfire how to cook. From what I can tell so far, she doesn't seem to be the best chef in the world. Cyborg and Beast Boy are plopped on the couch, a video game is starting. I'm about to excuse myself to the bathroom or to the exit.

"So," Cyborg draws out, "Would you be interested in becoming a full-time crime fighter?" Everyone freezes. After an excruciating moment of nothingness, Robin and Starfire step forward.

"Of course, but I mean…c'mon I don't even have an alter ego or costume!" I try laughing his question away. They weren't serious were they?

"That would be easy enough to change. There's another group like us: Titans East. Lately, I've gotten a lot of calls from Bee, she's their leader, complaining about not having an girls in the group."

Robin interrupts before I can even think of how to respond. "That doesn't seem like her to complain…?"

"Well…she didn't 'exactly' say that she wants someone, but she's been dropping all of these hints about friends and things. Aaaaaaaaand…she may have left her communicator on after she thought our conversation was over." He smirks greedily and rubs the back of his neck.

"I…I, um," I'm flustered and shocked, "I know I should say I have to think about it, but I'm just going to say yes!" I realize as soon as I say it that I've made a rash decision. It was a good kind of rashness though.

"Alright," Cyborg beamed. "I'll talk to Bee about it, and then you have to tell me everything about yourself. I have to put it in the database, just protocol." He adds, as I open my mouth to question him.

"What do I do for an outfit?" I ask as he sends out a call to the leader from the main T.V./Computer screen.

"We have a room full of fabric, sewing machines and stuff. You can figure something out down there. Raven, can you show her where it is?"

I snap my head over to the girl. "Sure," she says without even glancing up from her book.

We walk to the room in a comfortable silence. Raven didn't seem hostile in the slightest bit anymore. "What's your real name?" Her question surprises me. Well, it surprised me more that she closed her book to speak to me.

"It doesn't matter…"

"I'll be able to find out what it is in a few hours anyway. I just wondered, nobody would name their kid zephyr. That is a clever name though, considering your powers and such." She speaks blandly, but it made me feel better that she was being kind to me as well.

"Solana Lori Thorburn." I say under my breath as we enter the room. She doesn't respond, but I know that she heard me.

The room is medium sized. It's filled with every type of fabric imaginable, three sewing machines, twenty packs of needles, thousands of thread colors, everything that I could possibly want or need to make anything out of fabric. Raven sits in one of the chairs facing the door.

I already have a vague idea of how I want this to look. Also, I have a sketch of a superhero version of me that I drew when I was thirteen that I always carry around. I start running around the room, searching for my materials.

* * *

Finally, after working through blood and a minimal amount of sweat, I'm finished. I take a step back to admire myself in the bathrooms' full length mirror. My hair is down, but now that I have a mask I don't hide behind it. I'm wearing a leotard; it's dark grey, but then it sort of fades into a pure white when it reaches my fingertips. If I lift my arms up you just see the bit of the blue tinted wings that I can fan out for when I'm flying. I was wearing flesh colored tights that melded into a kind of light grey shoe that, though they it still feels like the same flimsy material, I had tested it to make sure it would be comfortable to walk on almost any surface. And finally my mask; the mask that I was currently hiding behind was the same dark, chalky grey as the lowest part of leotard. Once I had finished the original, I put it in a device that copied everything for me automatically and made fifteen extra outfits.

I walk out to find Raven isn't in the room any longer. I had spent a lot of time in the adjoining bathroom; she had probably became bored and left. I hear a noise and reach down to the black, leather strap around my thigh that held my communicator and ten or more arrow heads. I hope that I don't have to use the arrow heads.

It's a message from Cyborg to come back to the main room. I sprint as fast as I can and probably make it there in under a minute. The first thing I noticed was that, on the screen, there was a girl. She looked a little older than me, had dark skin, hair pulled up into two buns on either side of her head, and was wearing a yellow and black striped half-shirt. I assume in an instant that this must be Bee.

"Hello," she waves seeing me before the people in the room. I look around. _So Raven did come up here_…

"Hi," I say. Everyone's eyes are on me now.

"You look very nice, friend Zephyr." I find myself enjoying Starfires' always-happy attitude.

"Thanks," I reply.

"Anyway," Robin cuts in, "Now we need to know everything about you." I sit down next to Cyborg who's at a keyboard.

"Full name?"

"Solana, S-O-L-A-N-A, Lori, L-O-R-I, Thorburn, T-H-R-O-B-U-R-N." He nods, typing at superhuman speed.

I'm asked about my birthdate: March 20th, age: 15, hero name, nick name, then…

"Parents?"

"Um, ah…" I take a calming breath. "Zred, father…deceased. Sarah Ellen Thorburn…missing. Sarah with an 'H'." He goes on asking questions while Robin and Bee talk about being leaders, and Robin asks how she can put up with some named Speedy.

After a little while Cyborg is done questioning me about anything and everything, and I sit on the couch between Robin and Beast Boy right in the middle. Cyborg clicks a few more buttons, and then walks over to sit between Beast Boy and me.

"Well, hello again, Zephyr. I'm Bumblebee, I'll be your leader. None of really cook here, so I hope you like fish tacos."

"I don't! We don't need another water-creature-murderer here!" I can barely make out a voice from off-screen.

Bee rolls her eyes and keeps on talking. "Anyway, you're welcome to come on over tomorrow at dinner time. We can all have pizza someplace in town." I decide that I really like her then. "Oh, and don't mind Aqualad. He's just touchy about the whole eating fish thing."

"It's alright," I speak up, "I'm a Lacto- ovo- vegetarian anyway." They all turn to me with confused expressions. "You know, like not eating any kind of meat, but eating cheese and eggs, and some animal products." They all nod and look back to Bee.

"Hey, Aqualad, you've got a non-fish eating friend!" She calls, looking past the screen. This time I don't hear anything, but she smirks. "I gotta' go now, so just pack up all of your things tonight."

I look around at the people I'm with. "I suppose I should go back to my apartment and tell my roommate that I'm moving out." There was a ding. A red dot appeared on the main screen, and the layout of the city.

"Get you things, we have to leave. Just come back to the tower when you're all packed up." Robin was a natural leader. I watch them jog to the top of the tower, presumably to get into a plane or whatever they used in the air. Excitedly, I skip to the elevator door and press the button.

It only takes me a minute to reach the shore on the speedboat that they provide for pizza deliverer's. It takes me ten minutes to reach Pizza and Vin's, the restaurant that I've been working at for six months. Even though I had never officially worked anywhere in my life, they let me have a job. At the time I assumed it was because they took pity on me, but now I realize that it was because it was in the bad part of town where no one who lived there wanted to work. I was okay with it though. It helped my roommate pay the bills.

My roommate was rich. Her parents had given her enough money to buy the entire city, but she decided to only use a little bit of it on the rent. She said that she wanted to see how normal people lived. It made enough sense, and I needed a place to stay. Even though she almost always refused to use any of her 'Fund Money' as I called it, on rent she used it on food, makeup, and clothing. She works at a high-end fashion cooperation and is on a ladder that only goes up and she only graduated college last year, and always buys me the most amazing clothes and the best makeup.

After I had officially resigned, I could barely wait to run home. I realize as I'm about a block away from the pizza place that this could be a good time to see how well my wings work. I pull the invisible trigger string and hold my arms out. Willing a gust of wind to pick me up I soar into the sky. There's no one in the streets, so nobody is there to watch my magnificent wings in all of their glory held up to the bright moon.

I land silently on the fire escape. My wings fold back in as I press my index fingers together. As always, my window is unlocked and partially opened. I silently climb in, drop the bag on my bed, and run down the tiny hallway to her room. I hear keys clicking on the other side, and knock a few times.

"Come in," her pretty voice calls out. "You know you don't have to knock. Unless Phil's here, then you should probably go sit in your room and ignore any sort of noise you hear." She smiles at her own joke. Phillip or "Phil" is her boyfriend. I thought he was gay when we met. Sorry, he just seemed very flamboyant and he works in the fashion industry.

"Carry…?" She turns away from her laptop, making the swivel chair squeak.

"Yeah?" She asks carefully, putting her pretty, light brown hair up in a small pony tail.

"I'm going to be moving out." I say simply, plopping down on her comfy bed. Her dark brown eyes bore deep into mine.

"Why?"

"I, um, I got an offer from the Teen Titans to be part of Titans East. I'll be a superhero." I say dreamily.

"Is that you're outfit?" At first I'm scared she hates it, but I recognize the look in her face.

"Yes, they had a really big room full of fabrics and sewing machines and other junk that you would love."

"I _love_ it!" She squeals. "And I'm so happy for you, but, um, where is Titans East?"

"Star City," I'm going to try to add to my sentence, but she cuts me off.

"That's wonderful! Are they ok with you being vegetarian?" She's suddenly worried. I love how she treats me like a daughter or maybe a sister.

"Yeah, one of the guys in the group doesn't eat any fish or things from water, I think. Maybe he doesn't eat other meats too, I don't know."

"Who's in the group, anyone I would know?" She snaps her laptop shut and faces me full-on.

"I don't know if you'd know them, but there's a girl named Bumblebee and the rest are guys. There's Speedy, Aqualad, and Mas y Menos. They said I could move in tomorrow." I say nervously, but she's still excited.

"Well, I'll be sad to see you go, Lana, but this is fantastic. How old are the guys?" Everything always goes back to relationships with her.

"I don't know," I say truthfully, "I'll find out tonight and send you a text." I say jokingly.

"Awesome, do you want help packing?"

"Someone's a bit excited to see me go."

"Eh, I'm bored tonight, this is exciting, and…if I didn't want you here you would definitely be gone." She says it lightheartedly as we walk to my room, but I know it's true. She seems all nice and bubbly, and she is, but when she's mad she's as stubborn as an ox.

It takes close to an hour for us to finish packing. I pack lounge clothes for the most part; I know that I'll be wearing my costume for the rest of the time. I take all of the posters down from my walls, as many books as I can pack in my bag, my Native American flute, and anything or everything else I can think to bring.

"Well, I'm glad you graduated at such a young age. Or else I would not let you do this without making sure you were still learning." She zips up the suitcase that is almost as tall as me, and I heave it up.

"Bye, Carry." She gives me a long hug.

"Goodbye." I swear I see her wipe a tear away from her cheek, but I hop out of the fire escape and walk back to the tower.

* * *

"Hey, Zephyr," a voice calls out of the darkness. I was standing under a dim street light and couldn't see past it.

"Hello? Who are you?" I try to sound powerful, but I probably sounded like a chipmunk about to be run over.

"You'll find that out eventually. Going somewhere?" He asks, I hear his voice get closer.

"What does it matter to you?" I snap back. I wasn't sure if he was good or bad yet, but I didn't want to take my chances.

"Just wondering, I've known you for a very long time and I'd like to continue keeping tabs on you."

"Come into the light…please." I don't know where he is now. I hear footsteps all around me.

"I never thought you would stoop so low as to become a Titan." He's right behind me. I can feel his breath on the back of my neck. Part of me is terrified to turn around, but I do anyway.

In front of me is a boy who has to be close in age to me. He's wearing a mask that curves inwards to three spikes down his face and he's wearing all black with maroon detailing. Dark green eyes shine out from the black mask, and stand out against his apricot skin. I can see that his hair is tinted dark red against the brown that it is in the light. It's obvious that his black, leather, jacket is pleather.

"You've grown up since I last saw you." He reaches out to touch my mask, but I flinch away. He chuckles at himself and drops his hand. "There's no need to be scared of me, So. I know that you don't remember me, but I remember you. We were very young when we formally met, and then I suppose we fell out of contact only a short while after."

He's scaring me, a little. I have no idea who this creepy, stalker is. So I ask again, "Who are you?"

"That's difficult to explain, but in simple terms…I'm kind of your guardian, your protector."

"Who hired you to protect me?" I ask skeptically, taking a step toward him.

"I can help you find someone very dear to you." He ignores my question completely.

"Who?" I ask dropping my earlier question.

"Why, your Mother, of course."

I don't think about what I'm doing until he grabs my wrist, inches from his face. He can easily reach his second knuckle on his middle finger when he squeezes my wrist. I nearly wince in pain, but stop myself from doing so as soon as I feel my face start to contort. "Tut, tut, that's no way to treat someone who can help you get everything you've ever dreamed of." He holds my hand parallel to my face and leans in close.

"Are you a hero or a villain?" I know what the answer is, considering he's been pulling a whole mysterious man act since we'd met.

"I've done some things that fall under the category of bad." It was a plain enough answer. "But so have you" he breaths into me. His air feels cold and is almost minty. It takes me a moment to recoil away from him.

"Let go of me." I try ripping my hand away, but unfortunately it's obvious who's the strongest. "At least tell me your name." I say as I stop struggling.

"I've been called Shard by most people, but I want _you_ to know my real name." Before I can respond or run away he grabs my shoulders and pulls me close to him.

"Let me go, Shard." I avoid using his real name aloud. When he doesn't immediately release me, I send a gust of air aimed at his gut. Somehow, though, it doesn't make it to him. It's as if there's a force field around him and the air just billows up through our hair. He smiles for only a moment before sneering and pushing me away.

"Don't tell anyone about this or I won't help you, Lana." As soon as I'm out of the light of the street lamp, I extend my wings, will stream of wind to carry my suitcase with me, and fly away.

"Damn, she's beautiful." I barely make out his fading voice, and look back at the figure sitting on the curb, head hanging with mask in hand. I hope I never see him again. But as the night progresses, and I finally lie down to sleep in the small guest room of Titans Tower I can't help but think about the strange man.

* * *

I had spent the day figuring out how my room was going to look, reading, and thinking about the man. Finally, it was time to go leave to Titans East. I squeezed into the T-Car with everyone else and we rode. Soon enough we're at the pizza parlor and sitting outside the tables waiting for Titans East. It only takes them a few minutes to arrive. I set down my book as they exit their car.

I recognize Bumblebee immediately and wave to her. I notice one of the members, I assume Speedy, glaring at Robin. Mas y Menos are talking rapidly to each other, but as soon as they see Cyborg they rush to cling to him. Then, finally, there was Aqualad. His eyes are strange, but oddly inviting.

"Hello," I wave to all of them. Before they sit they all shake my hand. I'm sitting between Raven and Aqaulad. As everyone begins talking he leans toward me.

"So what's your reason for not eating fish or, um, any other type of meat?" His attempt at starting a conversation is polite, and my mind is taken away from Shard with his voice.

"I'm not really sure. My dad couldn't go into town when I was growing up, so all we had was a garden out back where we just grew out food. I just stuck with it I guess. What about you?"

"Well, I can telecommunicate with sea creatures and such. Some of my friends are from the ocean, so I'd feel like a monster eating them." I smile and nod. The pizza is served and everyone begins to eat and talk. I don't feel left out, but I want to leave.

"Excuse me," I say to no one in particular, just to be sure that they don't think I'm being rude. None of them are listening anyway. I walk for a long time before I hear his voice again.

"Hello, again," I can hear the smirk in his voice.

"Go away, Shard." I keep my eyes glued to the ruined asphalt of the ally.

"I know you've missed me."

"You're arrogant."

"Eh, only when you're around; I like flaunting my knowledge to the people I'm closest to."

"You must not be too close with anyone."

"Neither are you." As I'm about to send out a wave of wind, he dashes in front of me.

"Why can't I touch you?" I say through my teeth.

"Well, you can." I keep my eyes locked on the ground, but as I'm looking up to slap or punch him, he takes ahold of my wrist and twists me around so my arm is painfully pinned to my back and I'm facing away from him. "But I'm pretty sure we aren't talking about the same kind of touch." His cold breath on my neck makes me involuntarily shiver.

"Why can't my wind touch you?" I ask harshly.

"I…I don't know." He sounds less arrogant, and more like a real person. "It's always been like this. You can't touch me with your wind, even when you change the air pressure it doesn't change too much for me. That's my superpower, the ability to not be hurt by you."

"I'm sure I could hurt you."

"Really? The last two times you tried slapping me, I didn't feel a thing." I have to be careful and silent about this. I need to distract him for a few more seconds.

"Stop doing that." We hear a noise and he pulls me to his chest.

"Doing what?" He says looking around.

"You go in between being normal and then being a narcissistic jerk." Silence.

"Whatever, I'm here to tell you som—AHH!" The pain of the arrow in his thigh surprises him long enough for me to run out the alley and straight into Bumblebee. I yelp and duck my head.

She laughs and keeps walking. I follow, hoping that Shard won't dare to follow. "Sorry that I ran away. I wanted to look around the city on my own." It was a partial truth.

"It's alright, I sent the guys home because I figured that was all you were doing. You should've seen how worked up Aqualad was. He was scared it was something he said to you."

"All he did was ask why I was a vegetarian!" I laugh, but quickly cover my mouth with my gloved hand. I turn my head to look back. He's standing there, right in the alleyway's entrance, twirling my arrowhead in his hand. I know this isn't the last time I'm going to see that strange man.

"Meh, he's just like that sometimes." I pull my eyes back to her. She talks and rants for the rest of the time about the group. But nothing bad comes out of her mouth. When we make it to the Tower, I'm so tired that I flop onto my plain bed and boring room without noticing the note on the small, wooden nightstand.

* * *

** Well thank you if you're reading this or if you read the chapter but decided not the read this. Anyway, this is my first Teen Titans story, and I'm sorry that Shard and Zephyr/Solana are both so mysterious. I'll try to clear everything about Zephyr up if I write another chapter, and I'll probably clear a lot about Shard in the next few chapters. I'm not really sure if I'm going to have this keep going or if this was kind of a one-time thing. It depends on you guys…just review and tell me if I suck or not. I'm usually pretty good with criticism, so just tell me what you liked/didn't like whatever comes to mind. It's about 1:30 in the morning right now and I just got down watching Scott Pilgrim VS The World. Wallace made me laugh a lot and I really need to go to sleep now before I really start rambling.**


	2. No Longer Alone?

I had woken up before any of the other Titans, and decided to use my time to start on my room. The items I had requested for my room were waiting outside my door, so after I painted my room and smacked the decals I had asked for up on the wall, I lazily used my powers to set the furniture in the room. A few minutes later, I was sitting on the bed in my costume, reading the note. The writing wasn't the neatest, it looked a bit rushed.

Solana, our last meeting did not end that well. I really did need to tell you something and it was pretty important, so it would be just grand if we could meet up sometime. How about the corner of Church St. and Sparrow Lane on Sunday? If you don't comply, I will find you; I'm pretty good at that. I'd also like to help you with some of your goals; goals like finding out what happened to your mother. I'd very much like to figure out what the hell happened to that woman as well, but I need you with me. Before I sadden you at our future meeting, we won't be talking about your mom, we'll be talking about something that you and I have in common. I'm sure you'll enjoy that conversation. Don't tell anyone about this, or you get nothing. I hope to see you soon.

-S

"Zephyr!" I jumped and stuffed the letter into the strap with the pocket on my thigh. I opened the door in a hurry as Bee yawned. "Oh, you're up. We don't have any rules, really, just be up anywhere from seven to eight and training is around noon. We already have a special training room set up for you, it'll help with controlling your powers and learning how to use them in…different ways."

"Okay, thanks." I smiled as we began walking. I wondered what my training area would look like; it helped to shove the thought of the note to the back of my mind.

"The boys will probably be up a little later. I just like to wake up before them since I am the leader." I nodded, taking in all of the details of the boring hallway.

"How did you become…involved, I guess, with the Titans?" I asked as we stepped into the main living room.

"I was…do you want the long version or the short version?"

"Long version." I said, knowing it will help to keep my mind off of that stupid piece of paper.

"Well," she said cracking and egg onto a skillet, "I was undercover at The Hive, a school that basically trained young villains. I became the star pupil of the headmaster, and when the Titans were fighting him a while ago, he sent me to battle Cyborg. Obviously, I won, but I told him who I really was and that I was a good guy. We won, and defeated Brother Blood, the headmaster, and I became an Honorary Titan. Only a little bit after that they decided that the Titan's needed to spread, so the five of us became Titans East."

Before I could even think about what to say next, Speed and Aqualad walked in with drowsy looks on their face. "Morning," Speedy slumped down in a chair.

"What's for breakfast?" Aqualad said rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

"You could heat up some slices of leftover pizza." Speedy called from his seat in front of the main computer.

"It has sardines on it." He answered back smartly. I stood, pouring oatmeal into bowl and setting a kettle on the stove. Bee sat at the table, eating her full meal. Mas, who was closely followed by Menos, came into the room arguing with his brother.

"How old are they?" I whispered to Aqualad, who was rummaging around the refrigerator. He looked surprised that I was talking to him.

"The twins?" He whispered back.

"Yeah," I answered and poured the hot water into the oats.

"I think they're thirteen, why?"

"I don't know," I stirred around the water, "I just wondered. I don't really know too much about anyone yet."

"Oh, well," he said as I sat down at the long island, blowing on my oats, and facing him. He pointedly sat across from me. "I'm Aqualad, seventeen…black hair…" He seemed to run out of things to say.

"You're not a human, like a homo sapien…are you?"

"No," he laughed, "I'm an Atlantean. It's alright, most humans aren't really-"

"I'm not human."

"What?" It wasn't shocking that he was surprised. I suppose if I wore anything that exposed my legs, arms, or anything else but my face and hands for that matter, it would be fairly noticeable.

"I'm only half human. My father was from another planet, I'm not sure what it's called, he never told me. My mother is human though, that much I know." I laughed.

"Oh, you look completely human." I could tell he wanted an explanation, but I couldn't give it to anyone right now.

"Yup," I blankly nodded and stuffed a spoonful of the porridge into my mouth. Before either of us could speak again, the communicators began beeping.

"It's Mad Mod," Bee rushed her plate to the sink staring up at the large screen. There was a picture of an older man, with an obnoxious Union Jack print on it. "Let's go!"

oOo

"Mas! Menos!" I yelled over my wind and the spraying pipes. I don't know whether they actually answered me or not, but in an instant they were running at Mad Mod. Before the man could respond, they cuffed his hands. I think that the wind I had swirling around him might have restricted him from breathing well, and he passed out.

_"Now…you must come now. I know you… received my note…now…"_ The voice in my head persisted. Its words were split and dragging, but insistent. I tried focusing on the conversation that Bee and Speedy were trying to have with the twins. I glanced over at Aqualad, who was fixing the pipes. The parking garage was completely empty. I couldn't understand anything that they were saying. Every noise but _his_ voice was confusing.

"I…" I towards Bee whose back was facing me, "I feel sick, I need to leave." I felt a bead of sweat trail down my face.

She turned her head toward me, "Oh, we can take you home. You look like you're going to fall over any second now." She was about to take a step to tap Speedy on the shoulder, I grabbed her wrist.

"It's fine, you'll need to be here in case he tries to get free. I'll be fine, I'll call in if I'm going to pass out or die." I joke, hoping she'll let me go. I don't particularly want to see Shard, not after how our last meeting ended. Though I know I have to, because if I don't he'll either keep on assaulting my mind and/or find me.

"…Alright, I trust you." She smiled and went back to her previous conversation.

"Thanks," I whisper as I run to the exit. I didn't want to make a sound when I left, so I ran on the air, causing me to drain myself further.

Thankfully the theater was only a few blocks away, so I didn't have to suffer through him yelling in my mind any longer. I stumbled and groped the brick and concrete walls for some kind of support. It seemed to take ages before I made it to the alleyway.

"Finally," the voices in my head stopped to be replaced by his. "I felt kind of bad about using that on you, but oh well, I knew it would get you here sooner."

"What did you need to tell me?" He sat on a cardboard box and motioned for me to sit across from him. I remained standing, but I walked in front of him.

"Well, I don't like our meetings to be painfully short, so I was thinking you could ask me a couple more questions before we get started."

"Just tell me what you needed to." The nausea and headache were gone now, I stood as straight as I could.

"Are you really sure…?" He just wanted to tell me how he could do something like that to me…

"Fine," I whispered harshly, I wanted to yell, but this wasn't the place for that, "Fine…tell me how you managed to speak in my head."

"Well, now that you mention that, it was quite simple. You see, we're 'connected'. All I had to do was imagine that I was speaking to you in person and my thoughts go straight to your brain." He stood and poked my temple as I swatted his hand away.

"Now tell me what **you** needed to tell** me**." In all truth, I wanted to know more about how he spoke to me and how we were 'connected', but I was too stubborn to ask anymore.

"Oh, we're the same." He said casually.

"We're not the same."

"But we are." I was going to argue, even go so far as to tell him that I wasn't human or whatever he might. Before I could, he had already taken off his jacket. I kept my gaze on his eyes. "Look at my arm."

"How do I know that those aren't just tattoos or…or something else?"

"Because you look the same way under that stupid costume." I didn't say anything back, and he thrust his arm in front of my face. "Why are you so ashamed of this?!" He wasn't yelling, not yet anyway.

"I'm not…" I said it to myself for than him. One of his strong hands grabbed my shoulder and pulled the collar of my suit down three inches to reveal swirling and dotted prints that matched his to a tee.

"We really are alike." He seemed relieved, as if he wasn't sure.

"No we're not." Shard moved his hand away.

"Maybe you don't want to believe it, I didn't want to for a while, but you have to accept it."

"No," I reached toward my collar and pulled it so my shoulder was exposed, "_This_ proves that we're not the same." The three perfectly thin scars that disappeared into my costume and trailed further down my arm made my point.

"Your father was a little insane, so?"

"How do you know so much about my life?" The wind started picking up around us.

"…Slow down, Lana, wouldn't want your powers to get a little too out of control. That's happened before, and look what came of it." He was just **trying** to make me lose control.

"Stop," I breathed in and out. I felt something buzz against my leg. The wind settled, and I reached for the communicator.

_Bee: We're going back to the Tower now._

They would be wondering where I was if I stayed here any longer. I floated a few inches in the air.

"Where are you going?" His hand twitched, and he almost reached for me.

"Away from you."

"Eh…" he shrugged as I flew away, "We'll see each other again!" I blocked out Shard's voice, hoping he was wrong.

The wind was fast around me, residue of my anger. Thankfully, that helped me return to the tower quickly. Since no one was there, I decided to send a message to Bee and roam around.

_Zephyr: I am at the Tower, and I feel much better._

I decided to start at the bottom of the Tower, a place that I had never been in before. I was somewhat surprised to find a pool that lead out to the ocean. It must've have been made for Aqaulad. I sat at the edge and looked up, there was a tunnel that one could jump down and into the water.

"Hey."

I made a noise that sounded like something between a yelp and a scream, backing away from the water as fast as alien/human/mutant possible.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you." Aqaulad pushed himself up and onto the ledge of the pool.

"No…no, you're fine you just scared me a little." I caught my breath. I sat, Indian style, next to him on the edge. "So do all of you know everything about me? I mean Cyborg had me answer a ton of questions about myself and well…."

"I know you're real name if that what you're wondering, but I don't think that the rest of them do. I just clicked on your file by accident the other day, don't worry all I saw was your name." He said, leaning back a little bit. I pulled my hair to the side furthest away from him and began braiding.

"That's alright, I just wondered. My name is a bit… excessive isn't it?"

"I think that it's actually kind of neat."

"You flatter me too much Seaweed Boy. What about you?"

"Huh?"

"What's _your_ name?" He rubbed the back of his neck.

"…Garth, I'm Garth." He stuck his hand out to formally shake mine.

I grasped it, realizing how small my hand was compared to his. "Tell me all about yourself. I'd like to listen to a story, a life story." I said lying on my back and staring up the tunnel.

"Hmm…well-" _BEEP! BEEP!_

_T.E. Mass Message: Dinner in three minutes. If you want any, you better be up here._

"Maybe I could tell you all about the exciting life of Aqualad another time?" He warily said, looking down at his communicator.

"Alright," I sigh and stand up, "At least tell me some things about you and the Teen Titans. I guess that's an easy start."

* * *

** I know that this is immensely shorter than the first chapter, I'm sorry. I'm working on another story right now, I have one a hiatus that I'm currently figuring out, and I'm just starting to write an essay so I can win $7,000 dollars to go to Europe next summer. On top of non-stop practicing piano for my sister's wedding (her fiancé is such a fangirl, he really wants me to play this song from Twilight and it's insanely difficult). See ya! And I promise that things will start to pick up from here...**


	3. Lying on the Rooftop?

Zephyr sat on the edge of the tower, dangling her feet over the edge. The moon was strange tonight. The orb in the sky was full and orange. Her eyes drooped while her shoulders sagged. It was peaceful, the city was quiet. She curled up in a ball on the roof, still dangerously close to the edge. Her mask had fallen from her face when she lied upon the ground.

"You know," a sharp voice ran gout just as she was falling asleep. The girl frantically reached for her mask, to cover her face. Her hair was still pulled back, and she couldn't bear to not hide behind nothing. When she had met the Titans her hair was in her face, covering her eyes, no one had seen her vulnerable except for her father. "Falling asleep on the edge of a _very_ tall building isn't the best idea in the world." She was only to her knees when she felt a hand on her head, but kept her eyes on the ground.

"How the hell did you get up here, Shard?" She whispered.

"Eh, I just tapped into some of your powers. There aren't any booby traps set up in the sky, it was pretty easy." His hand remained on her skull.

"Leave."

"I think not. Don't you want something?" He teased.

"Give me my mask." Her tone was hard, but still drowsy.

"Why don't you actually look at me?" He said it softly, as if he really cared. "…Please? It's been so long since I've seen you're face or…or your smile." The boy drifted off into a dreamy state, but his hand was still forcing down her head.

"How do you know me?" His fingers slackened.

"Stand up, look at me, and I will tell you."

She had no other choice. Zephyr hated being in the dark about anything, and now was the perfect opportunity to learn everything. "Fine." She whispered and swiped his hand away from her head.

Slowly, she stood and tensely raised her head and eyes to meet his. The instant their irises met he grasped her face with both hands, and stayed like that for a minute studying her. Immediately she flinched back from his touch and quickly switched sides, so he was closer to the edge.

"I'll just get into it. My-"

"Zephyr?!" She twisted her head to face Aqualad, and began slowly backing up towards him.

"Leave!" She yelled at Shard.

"Oh, just because Unitard Guy is here-"

"I told you to leave the moment you got up here." He noticed she was ready to throw a punch.

Within seconds the second boy was standing next her. "…Fine…fine, I'll leave." He blasted up into the sky with a shoot of angry air. The girl, who had shoved on her mask at this point, felt suddenly drained of energy, and faltered.

"Whoa, whoa… are you alright?" He tightly wrapped his arms around her shoulders.

"I'm fine." She reached up to place her hand over his that was resting on her collarbone.

"No…no you're not." He wound one arm around her waist, the other was holding onto the hand that was resting on his shoulder. "Tell me what's wrong. Who was that?"

"I'm not really sure who that was," it was a viable half-truth, "He said that he can drain my powers and take them. He must've…must have just used up a lot of my energy."

_I sound so eloquent ._

"Alright…you'll be okay." She could feel the rest of her energy flowing out of her body. Once again her eyes fell. "C'mon, stay awake…please, stay awake…." His soft, gentle voice didn't help her keep her eyes open. Quite the opposite in fact.

oOo

When Solana awoke, the first thing she noticed was she wasn't in her own bed. Her eyes flicked around the room to look at several medical apparatuses. She twisted her head to the right, to see a sleeping Aqualad slumped over in a chair. Slowly, and silently she sat up, but as soon as her toes touched the floor, his onyx eyes flashed open and he was up in a heartbeat.

"Zephyr, you're awake." He beamed.

"Yes, I can see that." She hoped that he wouldn't think she was being too rude.

"Do you feel alright? You passed out after that guy left, and…I was just really worried."

"Did you stay here all night?" She said planting her feet on the ground and standing.

"Yeah…I, um, I stayed awake for as long as I could."

She looked at him strangely for a moment, then slowly and lightly enveloped him in a hug. "Oh," he whispered. As soon as she had touched him he had stiffened up. His entire body was tense. Before he could imagine becoming comfortable in the embrace she stepped away.

"Do you know where my room is?"

"Y-yes, actually I think I do." He sputtered out.

"Good, I have no idea how to get there. What time is it?"

"Okay…um," his eyes frantically searched the room for a clock, "Ah, um, ten thirty."

"Nothing has happened right?"

"Nope, no emergencies."

"Good," she said following him through the hallways.

After a few minutes he spoke, "How come you don't look like an alien at all? I get that you're only half, but I would think…I mean unless the planet your dad was from was a lot like here, but…"

"You can tell," she sighed. Maybe Shard was right. Up until then, everyone had been scared of her, thought she was odd. Solana felt so comfortable with Aqualad, or Garth as she probably would've preferred calling him, but didn't. It made sense that even after only knowing him for a day, she would show him. It made a lot of sense to her, but she didn't want to.

She wanted to hide away like she had every other time. It was time to change, but nobody likes to do that. Although, she figured that they were a team, a family and secrets would probably be frowned upon. It was like Cyborg had said, he was a half robot and Beast Boy was green. She thought a little more; Aqualad had black eyes and Bee had wings. They were all a little strange. It was time to step out of her comfort zone, wasn't it?

"It doesn't matter." It wasn't time. She was sure that there would never be a time.

"Wait, but how can you tell? Does it have something to do with how you talk, because I haven't noticed anything strange about…" He stopped, as if listening to something.

"No, it's just…it's like I sa-" She heard it too, but by that time she was too late.

"¡**Al suelo!**"

"Duck!"

Before she could react he had grabbed her arms and forced her to the ground as a top went flying through the air where their heads had been. Mas y Menos ran by seconds later yelling apologies to fast for either of the two to understand. She rolled her eyes at their antics, but inwardly smiled.

"Here," she looked up at Aqualad who was already standing.

"Thanks," So replied slipping her gloved hand into his. Nearly bumping her head into his chest when she stood, she sighed and looked up at him.

"You're welcome." He kept a steady gaze for a long time.

"Well," she broke the connection, "Actually, I think I can make it to my room from here. Besides, isn't your room right up there?" She pointed to the door at the end of the hall that obviously said AQUALAD.

"I…sure." He mumbled to the back of her head.

oOo

"I'm an idiot." Solana moaned into a pillow. "What did he even want? What was that? I…just…what?" She whined while changing. While walking to the door, she began to fishtail braid her hair, but as the girl opened the door she stopped short. Standing inches away from the door, hand rose as if he was going to knock, was Speedy. "Hello?"

"So…" he leaned on the doorframe, "Have you seen Aqualad lately?" He said knowingly.

"Umm…yeah, I think he's in his room."

"Hmm…mhmm, okay."

Lana raised an eyebrow at him. "Do know where Bee is? I think I should tell her about last night."

"Oh, yeah she'll want to hear your side of the story. You really should've seen Fish Boy, you would've thought someone had died."

"But do you know where Bee is?"

"…No."

"What did you want, then?" He was surprised that she didn't sound irritated at all.

"I figured I should tell you that he was really, _really_ worried about you. Brine Brain stayed up almost all night. Just be thankful for him, is all I'm saying." His eyes were hard behind the mask.

"I am." She said finally. Satisfied, he turned and began walking in the opposite direction she was heading. She knew what she had done to Shard had been semi-cruel, but she couldn't take any chances getting kicked out of a group of people she had connected to so quickly. She would easily take those people over a creepy guy who always knew where she was, even if he was a lot like her.

When she stepped into the main room she noticed Mas y Menos playing a video game with Speedy. Her eyes flicked across the room to see Bee writing something a piece of paper attached to a clipboard. Slowly, she made her way over to the leader, sitting on a stool at the counter across from her.

"Oh, you're awake then, Zephyr." She pleasantly smiled. "It's a good thing Aqualad was there…" she trailed off and scribbled a few more things on the paper, "Anyway, I need you to tell me all about whoever that guy was on the roof with you. Give me a detailed description of what he looked like and exactly what he said to you." She ordered.

Solana hesitated for a moment. "He came up to the top of the roof while I was half-asleep and I, well I didn't really notice him at first because he was completely silent. I asked who he was and why he was here. Then I told him to leave. He wouldn't say his name, but said 'I've got something to tell you.' Then I asked him to leave again, but he wouldn't and said he was going to tell me something. That's when Aqualad came up to the roof, and the guy left. I think the message was supposed to be for me. Maybe he was delivering it for someone…

"Anyhow, he had brown hair and…well I actually couldn't see his eyes as he was wearing a mask. He had really dark skin, and was wearing a black leather jacket, black jeans, and boots. And he was rather short too. Probably your height or even shorter, possibly…"

Bee slowly nodded as So stored away the lies about the boy in the back of her mind. "…Thanks," she said at last, "If he really had a message for you he'll come back, and we can catch him then."

"Sure…" she trailed off, "I'm going back to my room."

oOo

"Maybe writing in a journal would work…" Solana thought aloud, entering her room. She ran around the room, pulling a pen and some stationary out of her desk and sitting down to write.

_Dear piece of pretty, purple stationary,_

_ I don't feel awful, or dirty, or like there's a blood stain on my hands that won't ever come out. Maybe I should, but there's not too much of a reason for me to. Well, I suppose lying to my team is a reason to feel bad, but I don't. I mean, it's not as if this is hurting them or going to hurt them. And I won't allow this to get to that point. Sahard will be upset the next time we meet, I know that for certain. He was livid when I made him leave. I didn't know what else to do. Garth would've called the rest of the team, and Shard might've told them everything. I need to know what he knows about my mother…I just _need_ to know. I hope he isn't too mad…I really hope…_

KNOCK! KNOCK!

"Y-yes?" She stuttered and crumpled the paper, "I mean, come in." The door slide open with a small mechanical click.

"Hello, Zephyr?" It was Aqualad.

"Yes?" She asked.

"I figured I could bring you lunch, I figured you would need some food…"

She popped out of her seat and plopped onto the king size bed, motioning for him to sit with her. Slowly he walked toward the bed and sat about three feet away.

"Here," she glanced up at him. In his hands were two cheese sandwiches.

"Thanks." They sat in silence for a minute or two, eating.

"Listen," he said, she was still eating and staring at the bed covers, "I know that I-"

"Don't apologize for anything. You helped me last night and I didn't want to open up to you. This, in hindsight, is kind of a jerk thing to do. So…" she unhooked the secret clasp on her elbow and pulled up her glove, "here."

Her skin was revealed to someone at last. The swirls and dots gave a pulsing, blue glow.

"Oh," was all he said. After a moment he took her wrist in his hand, scooting closer to her and pulling her arm into his lap.

She blushed and looked away. "I wasn't like this until an accident, but that's what people from my father's planet look like. Since I'm half human, something traumatic or…or something had to happen before these appeared."

"What kind of accident were you in?" He asked tracing the glowing lines. She yanked her arm back and cradled it as she pulled her sleeve over the skin again.

"Maybe later." As she spoke their communicators began buzzing.

* * *

**Yeah, this is a little late. So sue me, I'm doing two other stories and developing a ton of other junk at the moment too. REVIEW MY KITTENS. **


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